I'll bet that if you're a Game Boy Advance owner who used to (or maybe still does) own a Super NES, you're getting mighty sick of all of Nintendo's so-called 'new games'. Thank goodness then, that Capcom was involved in the Game Boy Advance port of A Link to the Past. After a day or so of playing both games, it's certainly worth picking up a copy.

A Link to the Past is esentially the exact same game - if you've played the Super NES version, then you'll know what to do and where pretty much everything is. There are a couple of small things that have been changed, though - some changes to the dialogue (Zelda is no longer your ...), Link can groan and grunt when attacking - which is very odd - and a few new characters and features have been added. And thankfully, there IS an extra dungeon added as well, but accessing it is going to be damn hard. To access this new dungeon in A Link to the Past, you'll need to 'prove you're a hero' by completing both games - apparently you're not a hero already.

Because it's portable now, A Link to the Past has taken a leaf out of Link's Awakening and made it possible to restore your saved game from the last room you entered. You've still got the option of starting from the Sanctuary, your house or the Pyramid, but you can no longer start at the old man's cave on Death Mountain. I always did like the Link's Awakening save feature better anyway - you were able to start from where you were, rather than having to trudge all the way back there. There are other little features included in this version, too - rather than being a direct port like Super Mario Advance, this is more like "A Link to the Past DX", even though there are no real graphical enhancements in the game.

As you would expect, the button configuration has changed as well - but it does take a while to get used to. L is used to access the map and R is used as your 'action' button (for running, picking up, throwing and so on). SELECT brings up the item select and statistic screen, while pressing START pauses the game and gives saving, quitting and sleep options. The A Button uses your currently selected item, and can also be used to talk to people, read signs and open chests. B is used for your sword, as it was in Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.

The graphic style is still the same as it was back in 1992 - it's not a problem, but I find it surprising, especially seeing The Four Swords has all new art. I would have liked to see A Link to the Past with the new art - the Wind Waker Link style is surprisingly good looking as a 2-D character. It'd be great to see him running around in Hyrule.

But enough about A Link to the Past - what people want to know about is the new Zelda game, right? And the Four Swords is just that - a new game, and a new style of Zelda as well. The story is that an ancient mage of wind (wind, you say? Hmmm....) known as Vaati. Vaati has broken free of his ancient seal, and kidnapped Princess Zelda. Your only hope is in the Four Sword, which splits Link into four copies of himself. And thus the story begins.

Four players are NOT required to play Four Swords - certain puzzles are modified if you have less than four. However, you will need to have more than one player as the emphasis for Four Swords is on co-operation (along with competition). In order to defeat one enemy, you'll need to attack it, then two players will need to pull it apart. Another is a bat like creature that withdraws into a ball when you attack it. You'll need to attack it, throw it to another player, and the other player needs to quickly slash it while it is flapping its wings.

There are cleverly executed puzzles, as well. For example, there's a wall you can throw bombs over, but the blast doesn't quite reach the cracked wall. Get another player to use the new item, the Gnat Hat (which literally shrinks you to the size of two pixels) and walk through a small tunnel to the other side of the wall. From there, it's just a matter of catching or picking up the other player's bombs and placing them where they're meant to go.

Another puzzle sees you using the magnetic glove. One Link wields the glove, and drags the other two around a chasm so that they can both press the buttons to activate the bridge and let him over. And of course, there's the giant blocks that can only be pushed by three or four players - the funny thing is that if two players are pushing the block and waiting for the third to arrive, their faces will start to turn red from the strain! A nice touch.

But it's not all fair - when playing with my friends, it was a heated battle for rupees! Often a new area would open up and it would be a race to push through the door first and grab all the rupees inside! And if that's not nasty enough, then why not try throwing a pot on another Link? The player's screen will turn completely black and all you'll be able to see is Link with a pot on his head until you get it off. You could also pick up a Link and throw him into a pit, grabbing an extra treasure chest while you're at it - but maybe not. For if all players have perfect health, a message appears telling you of Rupee Fever, where all rupees are worth double their value. This mightn't seem much if you grab some green rupees, but find a large blue or red rupee in a treasure chest and you'll be gloating over all your friends.

Speaking of rupees, they're very important - although they all go into the same wallet, they're used to determine how well you're doing - you need a certain amount of rupees to get a key from a fairy at the end of a level. So of course, it's very easy to lose rupees too - you could accidently pick up a black rupee which sprays your cash out everywhere - or perhaps open a chest containing a Rupee Wraith rather than a prize. A Rupee Wraith will not only steal your money, but also your strength. Losing all your hearts will cause you to be 'downed' - you can only be revived after paying a hefty rupee fine. Each time you're downed, the fine increases, so it's better not to lose all your hearts!

Although we only played the introduction level to Four Swords, even that was a blast. You MUST buy this game. And get some friends. Or meet strangers on the street. Either way, you'll get plenty of fun out of the latest Zelda game.